


Shot Through the Heart

by dumpsterdiva



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Cuban Lance (Voltron), Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, F/M, Fluff, M/M, Pining, Slow Burn, Transgirl!Pidge, ace!allura, alternate universe - japanese sports school, bi!lance, demi!shiro, gay!keith, it may be set in asia but everyone has their canon races because this is fiction my dudes, matt and coran are also a little bit gay idk about their labels though, pan!hunk, what do you mean straight/cis people exist because they sure as hell dont in my fic
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-11-05
Updated: 2016-11-05
Packaged: 2018-08-29 06:11:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,683
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8478325
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dumpsterdiva/pseuds/dumpsterdiva
Summary: *Bon Jovi blaring in the background*AU where the children attend Earth’s number one sports school instead of space school. It’s set in Japan because why the fuck not, this show is originally Japanese. Lance practices kyudo and is jealous of Keith for too many reasons. Keith does kendo and is stupidly in love. They are both idiots and everyone suffers because of it. #help





	

**Author's Note:**

> Sup Klancy fronds. This is going to be my first long fic and I’m kind of nervous?? Also never written this much angst before. Another thing: I don’t know anything about any of these sports but my school has been having our sports festival, so I’ve been in a mood™. I think these sports are v cool and have an awesome history, which I’ve been reading more about. And while I’m Asian (aka I live in Asia), I’m not from Japan so if you feel like I’m misrepresenting or romanticizing something, please let me know. I’m still learning.
> 
> Although this is based off my school, it’s a sports school not a high school. From what I understand about the Garrison, I think it’s for like secondary school to like university in terms of age. So people who are or will be in relationships in this fic are all of consenting age (there’s no sex but STILL it’s important to say). Disclaimer: I don’t ship Shaladins at all, but Lance’s initial crush on Shiro is a convenient setting.

 

 _Thunk_  

Lance cocked his head to the side a bit and assessed his shot. Just a hairline away from the bullseye. He clicked his tongue and set up his fourth arrow. 

Taking a deep breath, he pulled back the bowstring and lined up his next shot. His peripheral vision blurred out as he focused on the target and took another calming breath. As he let go of the string, he felt the familiar thrum of the air vibrating next to his cheek and the soft tickle of the feather. He knew without looking that the shot was clean.

He smirked with satisfaction as the arrow squarely hit the bullseye. Admiring his work, he noticed his arrows had gathered beautifully in around the center of the target. Unconsciously, he looked over to his left, hoping to gain a certain someone’s approval.

Lance was disappointed to see that Shiro was not in his usual spot against the wall, but was instead coaching another student through the movements. Shiro’s arm gently rested on Matt’s shoulder as he guided the other boy through the motions. Matt’s eyes squeezed shut as he released his shot, only for them to shoot open in surprise when he heard the tell-tale thud of the arrow hitting the target.

Lance huffed out an annoyed breath, but he couldn’t stay mad at his friend. He had been in a slump lately, so it was good to see him finally back on his feet. Still, he couldn’t ignore the faint blush on Matt’s cheeks as Shiro animatedly congratulated him. _Yeah, you and me both, buddy,_ Lance thought.

Setting down his yumi against the wall, Lance cracked his neck and sighed. Afternoon lessons were his favorite part of the day, but he was still exhausted. Plus, he still had extra classes later tonight. Groaning to himself, he wiped the sweat off his brow and chugged his water.

“That was a nice shot earlier.”

Lance looked up and smiled at Hunk who was leaning against the wall with him now.

“Not doing too bad yourself, big guy. You’re in top form today,” Lance said as he put an arm around his best friend’s shoulder. 

Hunk shrugged, but Lance could tell he was proud of himself. “Yeah, I’m a bit surprised myself. Guess the extra training paid off after all.” He gave Lance a goofy grin before turning back to the target bank. “We better collect the arrows before Shiro gets on our case.”

Lance pushed himself off the wall and grumbled, “I wouldn’t really mind if he did.”

Hunk shook his head with a sigh. “Lance, would you keep it in your pants for a minute? There are children here.”

Lance rolled his eyes. “Sure thing, mom. I’ll try to keep my _giant, obvious crush_ PG-rated,” he said loudly enough for everyone in the dojo to hear and Hunk just slapped a hand to his face. Lance wasn’t one to keep quiet his attraction to anyone, but Hunk really wished he would consider the situation more sometimes. Wanting to see if Shiro had noticed, Lance snuck a quick peek at him before hurrying to collect the arrows with the other students.

The image of Shiro’s elegant form pulling the bowstring back stayed with Lance for the rest of class.

* * *

 

“Men-ari!”

Keith panted as he lifted his shinai off of Pidge’s head.

“Match over! Good work you two!” Allura said with a clap of her hands. “Next pair!”

Pidge and Keith shuffled off the mat and sat on the sidelines to watch the next match.

“Dammit Keith, when am I ever going to beat your sorry ass?” Pidge whispered as she took off her mask. Her hair was sticking up in twelve different directions, but she didn’t seem to mind.

Keith chuckled. “C’mon, Pidge. I’ve been doing this for way longer than you. Plus, I’m older. The fact that Allura is even pairing us together in matches is a compliment in it of itself. You’ve really improved this past year.

“Yeah, yeah. Whatever you say, Mr. Perfect. No excuses. I’ll beat you one day.” Pidge’s eyes glinted with determination and Keith really had to admire her dedication. He didn’t like to admit it, but even he wasn’t as good as Pidge when he was her age.

“When that day comes, I’ll treat you to dinner,” Keith said warmly as he tousled Pidge’s hair. She shot Keith an annoyed glare, but the small smile on her lips betrayed her excitement.

“Speaking of dinner, are you and Shiro free on Sunday? My family wanted to invite you two over to our place. It’ll be way better than Garrison food,” she said before sticking her tongue out.

Keith thought for a moment before saying, “Yeah, I’m free but I’ll have to double check with Shiro. Doubt he’ll say no to a home cooked meal and more time with your family.”

Pidge waggled her eyebrows. “Yeah, my _family_.”

Keith snorted loudly at Pidge’s suggestive tone, but one of Allura’s stern glares silenced him immediately. He and Pidge both straightened up and focused on the match. They would get a hell of a scolding later.

* * *

 

“Shiro! Beautiful! Wait up!”

Shiro turned around at the sound of Lance’s voice and smiled.

“Hey bud, nice job at practice today.” Lance tried not to blush too much at the praise.

“Really? You think so?” Lance stammered. “So, uh, what are you doing now, hot stuff?” _Nice recovery._

“I was going to head over to the kendo dojo.” Lance bristled, but then Shiro continued, “Wanna tag along? As long as you behave yourself.” He gave Lance a pointed look.

Lance nodded a bit too enthusiastically. “Yeah, of course. I promise to be on my best behavior. I’m always a good boy for you,” he said with a wink. Shiro just shook his head but gestured for Lance to follow him.

Lance didn’t really want to go to the kendo dojo, but if it meant more time with Shiro, it was a sacrifice he was willing to make. Falling into step next to Shiro, Lance tried to think of a conversation topic but came up empty, which was strange considering he always talked a mile a minute. His eyes drifted to Shiro’s defined jaw and broad chest and… He turned away quickly and tried to think of other things besides Shiro’s perfection.

Thankfully, Shiro did the work for him. “So where’s Hunk?” 

“On his way to the judo dojo. Honestly, it’s not fair that he’s good at so many sports. All the other divisions want him to switch, but thankfully he’s loyal to us. And to me.” Lance frowned. “Though lately he’s been making mushy eyes at this one girl. Built like a rock, but a heart of gold. I don’t think I’d mind if Hunk dated her since she seems great, but I am kind of worried he’ll forget about me. Not that our friendship is that—“ Lance paused his rambling at the sound of Shiro’s laughter. “What?”

Shiro punched Lance’s arm lightly. “It’s nothing. I’m just glad you’re back to normal. You were unusually quiet just now.”

Lance flushed. Was he that obvious? “Oh, well, you know, sometimes I have to take a moment of silence to appreciate fine works of art.” He weakly shot two finger guns in Shiro’s direction.

Shiro smirked with amusement, but followed Lance into the dojo. It was empty aside from Allura who was giving Keith and Pidge the lecture of a lifetime while they kneeled on the ground with pained expressions on their face. Lance almost collapsed into a laughing fit at the sight, but luckily controlled himself surprisingly well. He didn’t want the same treatment and Allura would definitely not have any qualms with lecturing someone from another division.

“Furthermore, you are two of my best students. If you aren’t on your best behavior, what kind of example does that set for the other students? I expect better from you two. I expect you to respect this space and your peers, not spend time gossiping and giggling in the corner like…“ Allura paused her ranting when she saw Shiro and Lance stifling their laughter into their fists in the corner. She raised an eyebrow. “Can I help you?”

Shiro and Lance immediately straightened and fought to control their facial expressions.

“No, no. We’re good. We’ll wait. Please continue,” Shiro said, struggling to keep his tone serious. Lance could see Keith and Pidge glaring daggers at them from the corner of their eyes. This was so fucking great.

Allura sighed and put a hand to her forehead. “Never mind that now. We were just finishing up. You two better get going. I better not catch you doing it again." 

She gave them another firm look and Keith and Pidge nodded vigorously. “Yes, ma’am.”

Allura walked gracefully over to Shiro and Lance as Keith and Pidge attempted to stand up on their numb legs. It was like watching a unicorn leading a pair of newborn foals who were just learning how to walk. Lance pinched his arm to keep himself from dissolving into laughter. He was _so_ glad he had come with Shiro today. 

Allura stood in front of them, but this time she was smiling. “So boys, how was practice?”

Shiro tilted his head. “Well, I didn’t have to give any lectures so maybe better than yours?”

Allura’s eye twitched and Lance wondered if Shiro had a death wish. “That’s simply because you are too soft on your students Shiro, which is why _we_ win more competitions.” She beamed and tossed her head back proudly.

Lance took a minute to admire her stunning beauty and the way confidence radiated off her in waves. Of course, he had hit on Allura within 0.2 seconds of meeting her. It had been one of his better pick-up lines (“If life were a deck of cards, you’d be the Queen of Hearts, because you’re already the ruler of mine.”), but Allura had quickly shot him down by saying, “Sorry, but if life were a deck of cards, I’d be the Ace of Gays.” Lance smiled fondly at the memory. It felt like so long ago. Sure, it had stung at the time, but he wasn’t one to dwell on people who had no potential of being interested in him. Shiro was more receptive of his flirting attempts. Or at least he didn’t insult or ignore Lance in response, which was the best he’d gotten in a while.

Shiro gave Allura an exasperated look. “Yeah, yeah. Keep rubbing it in.” He paused when he saw Keith and Pidge had finally joined them. “Do you two think you can manage or do you need a ride home?”

Keith and Pidge glared viciously at Shiro. “Laugh it up, but just know I’m officially revoking your invitation to dinner on Sunday,” Pidge grumbled.

Shiro pouted and Lance nearly had a heart attack at the sight. “Aw, Pidge, really? You know I love your mom’s spaghetti.”

Keith just smirked and said, “Well, I guess I could bring some to you afterwards if you beg.”

Shiro leaned onto Keith and said, “What was that? I couldn’t hear you over the sound of my crushing heartbreak.” Keith playfully tried to shove Shiro off, but relented and let his brother hang himself over his shoulders. 

“Fine, you can come if you let me crash at your place tonight. It’s criminal how much nicer the teacher barracks are compared to the student ones.”

Shiro gave his brother a hug from behind. “You got yourself a deal.”

Lance muscles tensed as he watched the scene unfold. His initial glee at watching Keith getting disciplined had long passed. There was nothing more he wanted than to tear out Keith’s mullet and kick him to the curb. Why was everyone always doting on him? Why was _Shiro_ always doting on him? He knew it was silly. Keith was Shiro’s brother. Still, Lance couldn’t help the way his jaw clenched up when he watched Shiro be so touchy and open with someone that wasn’t him. It was like Shiro couldn’t talk to Keith without putting a reassuring hand on his shoulder or playfully squishing his cheeks. Whenever Lance saw them together, they were always connected in some way and he hated it. He wondered what he had to do to make Shiro turn that affection to him just for once.

Plus, it didn’t help that Keith was basically the face of the Garrison. He had been scouted before applications for the year had even come out because he had won every junior and youth national kendo competition from the time he was six years old until now. Lance had to admit Keith had natural talent, of course, but he had also had private lessons, a dojo at his house, a teacher from the Garrison as his brother, and a full ride scholarship. Lance tried not to recall bitter memories of working two part-time jobs before biking to the nearest dojo thirty minutes away from his house, but his thoughts returned to the pain of countless all-nighters, piles of unpaid bills, and his mother’s teary eyes as he boarded the plane from Cuba. Looking at Keith’s disgruntled face amongst all these people who loved him, Lance dug his nails into his palms. The asshole had no idea how fucking lucky he was. 

Pidge broke him out of his internal monologue when she asked, “Hey Lance, are you going to weight training later today?”

“Yeah, if I don’t Coran will find me and drag me there himself.”

Pidge rolled her eyes. “I have no idea why he has such a soft spot for you, but I guess it’s nice to know someone will always be there to suffer with me.”

Lance welcomed the distraction the conversation allowed him. With a shit-eating grin, he replied, “You jealous because I’m Coran’s favorite?”

Pidge scoffed. “No, who needs that mustachioed geezer? Besides I’m Shiro’s favorite. Right?” She turned to Shiro who shrugged sheepishly. 

Lance furrowed his eyebrows and muttered, “Don’t be dumb, Pidge. His favorite’s Keith." 

Pidge perked up at this and gave Lance a knowing look. “What? Now you jealous, lover boy?” 

Lance spluttered, “What the quiznak, Pidge? I am _not_ jealous of that mullet-brained sword fanatic. More like I hate him.” He pointed at Keith who had shrugged Shiro off and was now frowning at Lance with his arms crossed.

“Excuse me?”

Lance turned to Keith and squinted. “You heard me, boy wonder. Not everyone thinks you’re hot shit. So sue me.”

Keith’s face darkened. “Why are you always such a grade-A asshole? What the hell did I ever do to you?”

“Please, like you don’t know that you’re basically king at this school. Everyone worships the ground you walk on for some reason. Just because you have a little talent, some money, and good looks doesn’t mean you have the right to show off all the time.”

Keith threw up his hands. “When do I ever show off?! Just because some people acknowledge that I work my ass off doesn’t mean that—wait, you think I look good?” Keith smirked at the realization. 

Lance blushed furiously, but weakly played it off as anger. “Please Keith, like my opinion matters. You already have half the student body wanting to take you out on a date. Just add that to your list of accomplishments. That’s just your life isn’t it? Fucking perfect. Handed to you on a silver platter.” Keith visibly prickled at this, but instead of arguing he just closed his eyes and inhaled sharply.

“Ugh, look, I couldn’t care less what you think, ok? You’re such an idiot,” Keith said with a dismissive wave of his hand 

Miffed at the poor response, Lance teased him a bit more. “Aw, poor Keith. Can’t take a little criticism. You scared of people telling you like it is?”

“You—I’m not scared and this isn’t criticism. This is just your petty and baseless hatred.”

“It’s a rivalry, Keith. Get it right.” 

“Oh please, you are _not_ my rival,” Keith said with contempt.

Lance inched closer, practically touching his forehead to Keith’s. “What is it samurai? Afraid of a challenge? I could take you any time any place!”

“Like hell you could. You couldn’t even get into this damn division!” Keith yelled.

Lance stepped back as if he had been slapped. Sharp splinters of memories of a torn up letter and a broken shinai filled his head. He didn’t know what expression he had on his face, but judging by the concerned looks everyone gave him, he knew it wasn’t a good one. 

Shiro stepped between them. “Alright, that’s enough you two. Lance, you promised not to cause any problems.” Lance looked to the ground sheepishly. “And Keith.” Shiro looked his brother square in the eye. “You know better.” Keith opened his mouth as if to argue, but quickly closed it and looked away guiltily.

Shiro sighed and continued, “I’m taking Lance back to the barracks. I’ll see you at home after you finish changing. Sorry about this, Allura.” He patted Pidge on the head affectionately before dragging Lance out of the dojo.

Lance spared one last look behind him and found himself making eye contact with Keith. He could see a storm of anger, annoyance, and shame in Keith’s eyes but, for the first time, he saw pity buried beneath it all. An ugly feeling boiled in his stomach and he tore his eyes away.

Of all the things Lance couldn’t stand, pity was the worst of all.

* * *

 

Shiro and Lance walked in silence for a few minutes before Shiro finally stopped in his tracks and turned to Lance expectantly.

Lance groaned. “I know, I know. I was an asshole, but he was one right back so do we really need to have this conversation right now?”

Shiro’s gaze softened. “We don’t have to talk about anything, but you and Keith really should do something about all this.” He waved his hand vaguely.

Lance kicked at the ground. “Shiro, I appreciate it and I know he’s your brother, but after tonight I don’t want to have anything to do with him.”

Shiro groaned. “Lance, I know Keith said a pretty horrible thing back there, but he didn’t mean it. You have a way of getting him riled up like no one else can and he’s the kind of person to act before he thinks. Can’t you have a civil conversation for once? If you do, you’ll realize he’s not a bad guy. I know you have your reasons, but you’re not the only one with baggage. Keith has his own demons.”

Lance couldn’t help the snort that escaped him at that notion. “Yeah, right. Sure he does.”

Shiro put a hand on Lance’s arm and the look he gave Lance froze the other boy in place. Shiro’s eyes looked distant and almost sad. “Just remember Lance, everyone is dealing with their own problems. Try to be kind to others, because you never know what’s happening behind the scenes. Alright?” Lance shuffled away awkwardly.

“I got it. I’ll try. But only because it’s you,” Lance emphasized. Shiro chuckled.

“I’ll take that.” The smile he gave Lance made his heart flutter a bit.

“You know, Shiro. Pidge was right. I am jealous of Keith, but maybe not in the way you think.” Lance took a breath. “I’m just jealous that you seem to have more fun with him than with me. You never get that touchy with anyone else,” Lance confessed bashfully. He didn’t dare look at Shiro, but to his surprise he felt an arm drape over his shoulder.

Shiro laughed playfully. “Was that all this was? You could’ve just said so. I’m a teacher so I try not to be too touchy with students without their explicit consent. I don’t want to abuse my power. But with Keith, it’s just a habit. It happens when you’ve been around someone for so long. Besides…” Shiro’s expression turned serious again. “After my accident, I was really scared to touch people again. I thought the prosthetic would freak everyone out, but Keith was just a kid so he just thought I had become Cyborg from Teen Titans. He couldn’t shut up about how cool it was.” The corner of Shiro’s mouth twitched upwards. “Anyways, for a while Keith was the only one I could touch comfortably, so even now it’s something I find myself doing unconsciously.”

For once, Lance didn’t feel that biting envy like he usually did when he heard the gentle voice Shiro used when talking about Keith, because Shiro was finally using that gentle tone with _him_. Leaning his head into _his_ shoulder. Talking about personal, private matters with _him_.

Lance wanted to jump for joy, but instead he fidgeted with his hands and said flippantly, “Well, you can be as touchy as you want with me.”

Shiro squeezed his shoulder. “Thanks, Lance. But let me know if it makes you uncomfortable at any point.”

 _You make me uncomfortable for a different reason,_ Lance thought. Shaking his head, he said, “Trust me, I’m more than fine with it. You don’t have to worry.”

They walked in silence for a bit more before Shiro said, “So does this mean you and Keith will talk things out? I really do want you two to get along better. And I want him to apologize properly for what he said about the… circumstances of your acceptance."

Lance stiffened but, trying to maintain a light tone he said, “Well, if you go on a date with me first maybe I’ll consider it.”

To his utter shock, Shiro replied, “So when should we go?”

“What?” Lance said incredulously.

“If I go on a date with you, would you be willing to meet up with Keith?”

Still in disbelief, Lance said, “Uh, hell fucking yes.”

Shiro smiled as they approached Lance’s door. “How does Friday sound?”

Lance simply nodded mutely before rushing into his room to collect himself.

He didn’t get a wink of sleep that night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Whew it's done. I hope the setting makes sense. I based the academic structure off my school. Basically everyone specializes in a sport and most of their classes revolve around that sport, but they also have some regular academic classes in the morning and extra classes like weight training or cardio in the evening. 
> 
> Lance is my child and he’s ridiculous and I love him BUT I HAD SUCH A HARD TIME WRITING HIM WITH A CRUSH ON SHIRO. GODDAMN I REAL DON’T SHIP SHANCE AT ALL BUT I HAD TO WRITE IT. IT FOR THE ~SETTING~ YA FEEL. Anyways I hope you liked that small intro. Sorry there's not a lot of Klance. Also it's 2 AM so this is probably really poorly edited and also a mess. I hope I don't regret it in the morning. Let me know what you think in the comments and we can scream together. I’ll try to update every week, but I just got another class added to my schedule because I need to help my students prep for the national exam, so it’ll be a hectic couple of weeks. Wish me luck!
> 
> P.S. MOM’S SPAGHETTI *that one alien gif*


End file.
